Free Ride to Crazytown

That dog whisperer guy has inspired me to do something that has all my friends and family cringing.

Murphy is a sporting dog. Murphy likes to run. Murphy has lots of energy. Me? Not so much energy.

But I have a bike... So I ride my bike while Murphy runs his heart out. He loves it! Although we have some issues to iron out, it's working out pretty well.

More than one person has tensed up at the news that someone who has had as many fights with gravity as I have, should put herself in such a position. And even though he is running, Murphy would still like to chase cats that are running in a different direction than I am headed. Also, we tend to be a magnet for loose dogs. We encounter at least one per week. If I try to scare them away, Murphy thinks I am talking to him and reacts. Furthermore, we need to learn how to communicate when it is time to take a poop break. Did you know that a dog can poop while running 10 mph? Neither did I... Consider me schooled.

I have a plan for making the concerned rest a little easier. Seeing as I am in the middle of some major dental work as a result of a battle I lost with gravity many years ago, I want to be safe and protect myself (and my dog) while giving Murphy the vigorous exercise he desires. So I will...
1. Find my Bike helmet. I know it's gotta be around somewhere...
2. Buy one of these.
3. Ride on the sidewalk where it seems smart. I'm also riding through the park behind my house which has a path that is about 1/2 mile long.

Springers Rule (Part 2)

Let me tell you what a trooper Murphy is.

I was pulling into my driveway this evening when my phone started ringing in my purse. I stop the car short of the garage to look for my phone and all of the sudden I see doggy eyes. My neighbors cocker spaniels are hiding under the pickup truck of the other neighbors.

A big storm is moving through the area and apparently blew open the gate to their back yard. They found shelter under the truck and were pretty happy to stay there. The dogs aren't very well socialized and they don't know me, so they won't come to me.

I try to get them to follow me. They won't.

I try knocking on the neighbors door and ringing the bell. No answer.

So I called in the Murph-ster. I put him on his leash and he herded them home (actually he sort of barked and scared them the amount needed to rally them through my yard and back into theirs. But hey... toe-may-toe, toe-mah-toe). I would have felt so bad if they had run away and something happened to them, even though my neighbors and I don't really know each other well. Hopefully I secured the gate well enough to contain them for the rest of the night.

In any event, Murphy provided the right stimulus to get those pups home safely so I'm very proud of him.

Bravo! A performance worthy of the Kong.

Springers Rule!

Way to go, Diamond Jim! Not only is he the new champ, but he is also a therapy dog. He's like the Miss America of Dog Show champs. Murphy is very proud of his breed representative, and hoping to follow in Jim's footsteps as a therapy dog someday.